SEC Approves First 3x Leveraged Bitcoin and Ether ETFs for Cboe BZX

Highlights:

• SEC approved new 3x Bitcoin and Ether ETFs for listing and trading on the Cboe BZX Exchange.
• The funds will use futures contracts to target three times the daily moves of Bitcoin and Ether.
• Volatility Shares will manage the products, expanding leveraged crypto options available to traders in the United States.

The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has approved the listing and trading of new 3x leveraged Bitcoin and Ether products on Cboe BZX Exchange. The approval covers the 3x Bitcoin ETF and 3x Ether ETF, along with similar products tied to gold, silver, crude oil and natural gas. The SEC issued the approval order on October 2, 2026.

ETF analyst Nate Geraci highlighted the decision in an October 3 post on X. He described the Bitcoin and Ether products as the first 3x leveraged ETFs of their kind. Geraci also pointed to the sharp change in the U.S. crypto ETF market over the past few years. He noted that less than three years ago, the SEC was still involved in its legal battle with Grayscale over a standard spot Bitcoin ETF.

SEC *approves* listing & trading of first 3x leveraged bitcoin & ether ETFs…

Less than 3 years ago, SEC still hadn’t concluded lawsuit vs Grayscale over plain-vanilla spot bitcoin ETF.

Wild turn of events. pic.twitter.com/dJuVlUTvne

— Nate Geraci (@NateGeraci) October 3, 2026

3x Bitcoin and Ether Funds Will Use Futures

The new products are part of the VS Trust, and Volatility Shares LLC will manage them. Unlike spot Bitcoin or Ether products, they will not simply hold BTC or ETH and follow their market prices. Instead, the funds will mainly use futures contracts. Each product aims to deliver three times the daily performance of its underlying benchmark before fees and expenses. The benchmarks track portfolios of first- and second-month futures contracts for their respective commodities.

For example, if the Bitcoin benchmark rises 1% in a day, the 3x Bitcoin product is designed to gain about 3% before fees and other costs. However, a 1% daily decline could also translate into a roughly 3% loss. The daily target matters. Leveraged products reset their exposure regularly, so returns over longer periods may not equal three times Bitcoin’s or Ether’s overall move.

The SEC also makes a technical distinction in its order. Although the products use “ETF” in their names, the SEC classifies them as Commodity-Based Trust Shares and therefore under the broader exchange-traded product, or ETP, category.

SEC Clears Cboe BZX Listing Proposal

Cboe BZX originally filed the proposed rule change with the SEC on August 10. The proposal was published for public comment on August 19, and the SEC said it received no comments. The Commission has now formally approved the filing, identified as SR-CboeBZX-2026-065.

In reviewing the proposal, the SEC said the products would meet existing requirements for Commodity-Based Trust Shares, except for their 3x daily leverage. The agency also pointed to existing surveillance, disclosure and investor-protection rules that apply to the products. Volatility Shares already manages leveraged crypto products, including the 2x Bitcoin ETF, BITX, and the 2x Ether ETF, ETHU. The SEC specifically referenced both products when discussing existing leveraged exposure available in U.S. markets. 

At the time of writing, Bitcoin was trading near $84,574, with a 24-hour range of about $83,852 to $87,146. Ether is trading around $2,681, after moving between roughly $2,651 and $2,767 over the same period. The newly approved 3x products will give traders another way to gain leveraged daily exposure to price moves in the two largest cryptocurrencies.